Does the Gospel of Mark Present Jesus as God?
Over the years it has been claimed (again and again) that John presents Jesus as divine, and the Synoptic gospels, particularly Mark, present Jesus as human. Therefore, it is argued, we have different versions of Christology within early Christianity.
While we certainly can agree that different gospels have different emphases, and that they articulate Christological truths in their own ways, is it really the case that gospels like Mark view Jesus as merely human? Not at all. In fact, it is worth noting that Mark presents Jesus as God from the very opening few verses in his gospel, in a manner that is often missed on a quick reading of … Continue reading...
“The Question of Canon” Now Available
I was just informed by IVP-Academic that my book, The Question of Canon: Challenging the Status Quo in the New Testament Debate, is now out and available for purchase (see here). This was a bit of a surprise because I haven’t received my own copy yet! But, I am glad to know it is out.
Here is the description of the book:
…Unlike many books on the New Testament canon, this book does not seek to explain why these books and no others. It asks the questions: Why is there a NT at all? Was the notion of a canon of literature out of sync with the earliest
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Top Ten Books on the Authority of Scripture (and Honorable Mentions)
Over at The Gospel Coalition, they have published my article on the top ten book on the authority of Scripture. I go through what I think are the best modern (Reformation and later) treatments of this issue from a theological perspective (as opposed to just historical). I then give a paragraph description of each book.
Here is the bare list (you will have to go to TGC to get the full article):
10. D. A. Carson and John Woodbridge, eds., Scripture and Truth (Baker, 1983); idem, Hermeneutics, Authority, and Canon (Zondervan, 1986).
9. Herman Bavinck, Reformed Dogmatics: Prolegomena (vol. 1): Part IV: Revelation (Baker Academic, 2003).
8. E. J. … Continue reading...
Rob Bell, Oprah Winfrey, and the Missing Jesus
Getting Oprah Winfrey to endorse your book may mean a lot of different things. It would no doubt mean that books sales are going up (exponentially). It would also mean your book would be read by many folks that otherwise would not read it.
But, one thing it probably does not mean is that your book is a bold and faithful exposition of evangelical Christian beliefs. On the contrary, Oprah stands as the religious antithesis to biblical Christianity. She is not about Christianity at all, but is about spirituality. She, and millions of Americans, are simply looking for an existential experience with the divine that can bring meaning and … Continue reading...
Did Matthew Think He Was Writing Scripture?
One of the most common misconceptions about the New Testament canon is that the authors of these writings had no idea that they were writing Scripture-like books. I dealt with this misconception on a general level here, showing that there was a clear apostolic self-awareness amongst the New Testament authors.
While this apostolic self-awareness may be easy to show for authors like Paul, what about the gospels which, technically speaking, are formally anonymous? Do their authors exhibit awareness that they were writing something like Scripture? To explore this further, let us just consider just one of our gospels, namely the Gospel of Matthew.
The first step is to get … Continue reading...